Dissonance in A Minor
by arainymonday
Summary: James Potter decides it would be a good idea for the Head Boy and Head Girl to spend some time together ... in detention.
1. 1: She Drives Me Crazy

******DISCLAIMER: **I'm just playing in the Harry Potter sandbox. If you recognize it from elsewhere, I don't own it.  
**AUTHOR'S NOTE:** This story was written in response to Mini Marauder's Shuffled story challenge. The idea was to shuffle the songs on your iPod and, shuffling those songs in any order, write a ten-chaptered short story based on those ten songs. Don't laugh at the songs I have on my iPod, all right?

Also, I want to give a huge "thank you" to my wonderful Beta-reader, IrishEspressoGirl from Perfect Imagination.

* * *

**Dissonance in A Minor**

**Chapter One**

"**She Drives Me Crazy"**

The ingenious plan had hatched over the summer. At first, it was little more than a niggling thought in the back of his mind. But finally it was fully formed and ready to be put into action. Everything had been carefully planned and executed.

As Head Boy and Girl, they had instructed the new prefects in their duties on the Hogwarts Express. And he hadn't asked her out. They had shared a carriage on the ride up to the castle. And he hadn't asked her out. They had shown the first-years to Gryffindor Tower. And he hadn't asked her out.

But now, it was time for the ingenious plan to be put into motion.

"Hey, Prongs," Remus Lupin began, "why are you staring at Lily like she just stole your precious filched Snitch?"

James Potter turned towards his friends. Breakfast was laid out along the table. Tureens of every kind of fruit, plates full of bacon, and steaming scrambled eggs sat in front of him. But all of his attention had been focused on Lily Evans, who was sitting down the table with her friends. He hadn't been daydreaming or fantasizing or doing any of his normal activities when he stared at her. He had been calculating the best time to execute his brilliant plan.

"I have a plan," James said.

All three of his friends were sitting opposite from him. Their reactions to his statement might have been comical if it wasn't such a serious matter. Wormtail perked up and leaned over the table eagerly. Padfoot grinned mischievously. And Moony rolled his eyes.

"Prongs, you're Head Boy. You can't go around making trouble all the time. You're being held to a higher standard," Remus said reasonably.

"Thank you, Professor McGonagall," Sirius Black retorted. "Now, you were saying you had a plan."

James took a deep breath. He hadn't said a word of this to anyone, but it was the first day of classes—a Friday this year—and that was an opportunity he could not pass up. He looked at Evans again. She was sitting there all pretty and alluring, eating her eggs and bacon with a pleasant expression on her face.

Merlin, she was amazing.

"I've made a decision," James announced to his friends. "Evans is going to fall in love with me tomorrow or I'm giving up on her for good."

Wormtail nodded eagerly, but he did that whenever James said something. He turned to Padfoot and Moony. They would give him some helpful feedback. Padfoot looked crestfallen, as though James had taken away his broomstick. Moony kept a neutral expression on his face.

"Good for you, mate," Sirius said finally, with a note of forced enthusiasm in his voice. "She's been passing up a generous offer of butterbeer and snogging for too long."

Moony just rolled his eyes again, so James continued with his rehearsed speech. Wormtail's head began bobbing right away.

"I'm going to spend a whole day with her and let her see how great we would be for each other. Then, I'm going to ask her out. If she says yes, well, great. But if she says no, then that's it. I'm done with her."

"So, the plan is to ask Lily out. Again?" Remus questioned.

"Basically."

James was beginning to see a slight flaw in his ingenious plan. But it was, on the whole, the best idea he'd had for getting Evans to date him, so he was going to forge ahead bravely.

"She's going to say no," Remus stated.

"Thank you for your encouragement, Moony," Sirius spat. "Don't bother with him, Prongs. He's just having a tizzy fit because he's not Head Boy."

"That's not—"

"The point," Peter said firmly. He cast an apologetic look at Remus. "But I agree with Padfoot. She'd be crazy to pass up her last chance. She's only been playing hard to get anyway."

Padfoot seized on the statement and began a long, rambling diatribe about how girls were always doing mad stuff like that. Moony went back to his breakfast with a sad little shake of his head. But James wasn't really paying attention to either of them.

Evans had just ladled more eggs onto her plate and pulled the platter of sausages towards her. She wouldn't be heading off to class for a little while longer. They had Herbology first thing Friday morning. That meant he could pull off his brilliant plan in the Entrance Hall.

But there was one catch. One huge catch that could make or break his entire haphazardly formed, halfway-thought-out plan. The success or failure rested on three people—well, one person and two beings—happening upon the right place at the right time.

And that was where the Marauders came into play. He couldn't leave it to chance. His future with Evans was at stake. James needed certainty. He needed precision. He needed Padfoot to stop ranting and Moony to stop eye-rolling.

"All right, look," James interrupted.

Padfoot fell silent, not a touch of annoyance on his face. James suspected that he may have been talking just to talk and keep Moony from lecturing. Wormtail put down his utensils, knowing something important was about to happen. Even Moony, with a reluctant sigh, gave his attention to James.

"Wormtail, I need you to go to the fifth floor landing."

He pushed something into Wormtail's hands. The blond boy's eyes widened. James didn't need to say anything more. He knew exactly what was expected of him and what the consequences would be. He nodded solemnly with tightened jaw, like a solider going off to war who knows he will not return.

"Moony, you're the most respectable one of us. I need you to report a misbehaving student. You know to whom."

Moony closed his eyes and breathed deeply. He shook his head, not in response to James's request, but out of sheer disbelief. He was going to do it, of course, but there would be Hell to pay. Actually, there would be points, detentions, and Howlers to pay.

"Padfoot," James said grimly. "You've got the most crucial job of the lot. If you fail, the whole mission is ruined. We'll be serving detentions until we graduate, and I still won't have Evans."

"Just name it, Prongs."

Despite his disappointment, the idea of doing something that broke so many rules and with such severe consequences had sent a spark of electric anticipation through Sirius. He was willing to do almost anything to help Prongs get Evans.

"You've got to find Our Nemesis and make sure that both of you are in the Entrance Hall exactly when Evans is walking to Herbology."

James watched his friends leave the Great Hall. He gave each of the Marauders a grim nod. His fate was in their hands.

And now for his part in the plan. He would have to exercise extreme patience while Evans finished her breakfast. And then, inconspicuously as he could, stalk her out of the Great Hall. He would have to get close enough to take what he needed without alerting her to his presence. If everything went according to plan and all the players were in motion, James Potter would make Lily Evans fall in love with him.


	2. 2: Just Push Play

**Dissonance in A Minor**

**Chapter Two**

"**Just Push Play"**

Hazel eyes raked the Entrance Hall. Everything was going exactly as planned.

James spotted Wormtail on the fifth floor landing, high above the milling crowd of students who had just finished breakfast and were heading off to class. Just in front of James, chatting about the first Hogsmeade visit with her friends, was Lily Evans, completely unaware of his presence.

James could just see Moony pushing his way down the marble staircase towards the Entrance Hall. Every few seconds, he looked over his shoulder and called something. James thought he saw the words: 'I don't know. Some first-year dumped their pumpkin juice' form on Moony's lips, but from this distance it was impossible to be sure. Behind Moony came the wheezing, scowling figure of Argus Filch. The caretaker looked like he was itching for a fight.

And suddenly, from up above, a great commotion broke out. Peter had dropped the handful of Dr. Filibuster's No-Heat Wet-Start fireworks. Students were screaming and running in all directions. And exactly as James had expected, Peeves came swooping into the fray. Wormtail ran for it, leading Peeves down the ever-changing staircases. The poltergeist was singing raucously as he chased after Wormtail.

_It was Petty Petty Pettigrew!_

_Petty Petty Pettigrew!_

An office door flew open and slammed against the wall right at about the time Wormtail would have been deliberately running past the Transfiguration office. James could only hope Wormtail did not stop and let McGonagall bawl him out.

And now for the most crucial part of the plan. Padfoot had to show up with Their Nemesis in tow, or the whole plan would fall to pieces. Moony would be scolded for luring Filch away from his office for nothing while Wormtail would serve months' worth of detentions for setting off fireworks.

Right on time, Padfoot came skidding into the Entrance Hall. He had a disheveled look about him, as though he had been a big black dog only a moment before. Clutched in his arms— hissing, spitting, hair standing on end—was Filch's new kitten, Mrs. Norris. Padfoot drew an arm back and tossed Mrs. Norris into the milling crowd of students.

It seemed to James that the moment stretched on interminably. This was it. It was now or never. Either he went through with this plan or left his friends to suffer the consequences of helping him out.

For a moment, he considered calling off the whole thing. Regardless of his undying love for Evans, Moony had been right. He really was a role model. Dumbledore had made him Head Boy, and to carry out this plan would call into question every one of Dumbledore's reasons.

But James had never been one to brood on consequences. He acted first and thought later. In the time it took for Mrs. Norris to leave Padfoot's arms and glide through the air, James had lunged forward. He thrust his hand into Evans's robes and yanked out her wand from the pocket she always kept it in. Without a thought for the wide, panicked look in Evans's eyes, James pointed the wand at Mrs. Norris. He silently cast the spell.

A jet of red light lit up the cat. Every hair on Mrs. Norris's body stood on end, and her violent mewling ceased at once. She landed on the hard stone floor. Shocked silence fell over the crowd. Someone (and not many had seen who) had just Stunned Mrs. Norris in front of Mr. Filch, Peeves, and Professor McGonagall.

No one, not even Moony, Wormtail, and Padfoot noticed that James had cast, not one, but four spells: a Cheering Charm, a Sleeping Spell, a Cushioning Charm, and a Stunner. The last spell had been pointed at the empty space above Mrs. Norris, and the red light of the Stunning Spell had vanished through the open front doors without ever touching the kitten. Mrs. Norris was sleeping peacefully, but only James knew that.

"_Who did this!_" Professor McGonagall demanded.

The Transfiguration professor's lips were as thin as anyone had ever seen them, and great splotches of red had appeared on her cheeks. She pulled out her wand threateningly, and she looked as though whoever was responsible was about to find themselves Transfigured into a mouse.

Her hissed question seemed to bring Filch out of his shock. He began howling and shrieking at anyone near him. Moony received the brunt of the caretaker's threats, but Remus stayed loyal as ever. His eyes never strayed towards James. Filch picked up the limp form of Mrs. Norris and began cradling her in his arms.

"She was only a kitten!" he howled. "You—you miscreants—you killed an innocent kitten!"

The caretaker whipped around suddenly and faced James. "It was you! You and your deviant friends! I know it was! I know it!"

Some students had begun, very wisely, to back out of the Entrance hall. But McGonagall spotted this right away and was having none of it. She raised her wand, and with fury in her voice quite unlike her usual tone, she cast an Impediment Jinx on the entire Entrance Hall.

McGonagall did not want to seem to believe that the new Head Boy would do something so atrocious or so blatantly violate the rules. She rushed over to the other side of the Entrance Hall and began inspecting wands. One-by-one, she put the tip of her wand to the students' wands and recalled the last spell performed. As they were vindicated, the students rushed off.

Belatedly, James realized that he was still holding Evans's wand. He fought against the Impediment Jinx, struggling to move his fingers. Painfully slowly, he was able to wiggle the tips of his fingers just enough to shift the wand around. It was going to take all his effort to get it back into Evans's hand, but her fingers were curled slightly, just enough to hold a wand.

A mousy-looking third-year became absolutely terrified when her wand emitted the echo of a Stunning Spell. James felt real panic for the first time. If this girl was punished instead of Evans, then everything had been for naught. His plan was unraveling rapidly, and he began to realize how thoroughly not-brilliant his scheme had been.

But then McGonagall waved off Filch's cries of indignation and call for the girl to be struck by up her ankles in the dungeons over a room full of firecrabs.

"No, Argus," she said. "Miss Young has only just learned how to Stun in Defense Against the Dark Arts. She could not have done it nonverbally."

This statement so heartened James that he was able to move his fingers forward just enough to slip the wand into Evans's hand. He thought he heard her draw in a sharp breath, but from his place behind her, he could not tell how much she could move.

"Test him, Professor!" Filch demanded, pointing a threatening finger at James. "He's been after Mrs. Norris since I got her! He's a hoodlum. This is just like something he would do."

McGonagall looked suspicious as she tested James's wand, but the echo of a Patronus appeared. For a moment, James thought she looked unbelieving. After all, why would he have needed to produce a Patronus over summer break? But she let it pass, probably chalking it up to his love of showing off.

McGonagall took the wand from Evans with a bored expression. She clearly expected to find nothing of importance. But, as James had planned it, an echo of red mist appeared from the wand tip. McGonagall stared at Evans in shock.

"Her?" Filch asked, looking between Evans and James. "Not him?"

There were only three other people left to be tested. McGonagall rushed over to Sirius, the most likely culprit, but found only the echo of a Summoning Charm.

"Miss Evans," McGonagall said in a scandalized voice, "I expected better of the Head Girl, and a Gryffindor to boot. I'm so ashamed! You have lost Gryffindor fifty points and you will report to my office tomorrow morning at seven sharp for a full day of detention."

"You sure?" Filch asked, staring hard at James.

James smirked evilly at Filch, and watching McGonagall from the corner of his eye, replaced it with a neutral expression exactly a moment too late.

"You too, Mr. Potter," McGonagall said, as if her suspicions were confirmed. "And another fifty points from Gryffindor."


	3. 3: Deuces Are Wild

**Dissonance in A Minor**

**Chapter Three**

"**Deuces Are Wild"**

The early morning light cast blue shadows across the Gryffindor common room. The twittering of birds had just begun when Lily Evans left the girls' dormitory and entered the common room. She was wearing comfortable Muggle clothes this morning. She had a feeling she would be doing hard labor.

Not that she should have to serve detention at all. It was Potter who had stolen her wand and hexed Mrs. Norris. The thought made her blood boil. She had thought that maybe, just maybe, becoming Head Boy would make a human out of him. Instead, on the first day back, he hexed a defenseless animal. Granted, that cat was no picnic, but it didn't deserve to be so mistreated.

And, of course, Potter had landed her in detention as well. Lily was no stranger to detention. She had served a fair few in her time for breaking curfew, dueling, and disrespecting prefects, but she wasn't a delinquent like Potter and his friends. Now that she was Head Girl, she had decided to reform completely.

Then Potter had to go and ruin it. Lily had tried to explain to Professor McGonagall what had happened. While the professor was more than willing to believe it of Potter, Lily was Head Girl and as such, she was a role model. She could not be seen to get out of punishments because of favoritism.

So Lily had dragged herself out of bed at six in the morning on the first Saturday back at Hogwarts to serve a detention with James Potter. She wouldn't have been surprised if he had been late. Much to her chagrin, he showed up in the common room on time. Damn. She had really been hoping to yell at him.

"Ready?" he asked brightly.

Without a word, because Lily knew she'd wake up the whole House if she got started, she pushed open the portrait of the Fat Lady and began walking towards Professor McGonagall's office. It was all the way across the castle and six floors down.

"You seem kind of down today, Evans."

Lily sent a glare in his direction. Now that they were a safe distance from sleeping students, she felt that a good talking-to was in order.

"I don't know what your problem is, Potter, but I've had enough of it. You're going to stop terrorizing me this year or else."

Potter looked genuinely taken aback. He stopped walking for a second, clearly under the impression that Lily would stop as well. She didn't. He rushed to catch up with her as she swung around the seventh floor landing and began hurrying down the first flight of stairs. The portraits of hundreds of wizards watched them curiously. Students weren't usually up at six-thirty on a Saturday morning.

"I don't know what you mean, Evans."

Lily rolled her eyes. "Right. You steal my wand, hex a cat, and get me landed in detention. You don't even protest when Filch suggests you had something to do with it, and just grin like an idiot at McGonagall when she gives you a detention as well."

Potter shook his head. "Nothing strange about that. I always accept punishment when I've earned it. And I only got you put in detention so that you'd have to spend the whole day with me."

"Like I said," Lily retorted dryly. "You've gone off your rocker, Potter. For the past six years you've been asking me out every other day, and now you're getting me into trouble. That's seriously bipolar, that is."

Potter didn't say anything as Lily leapt from the landing to the moving staircase. He had to hurry before the gap was too wide for him to jump. Lily felt a sense of fiendish glee seeing him stumble on the steps. She was probably the only person mad enough to jump onto moving staircases, but she had always loved heights and the thrill of falling.

"It's not bipolar. I feel the same about you."

"Do you usually get people you like into trouble?" She didn't wait for him to answer, although he opened his mouth to do so. "No, you don't. In June, you're beside yourself with adoration and in September, you hate me. I can't abide inconsistency, Potter."

Potter's brow furrowed. The conversation didn't seem to be going the way he had intended. Lily grinned. She always loved doing that to him. He liked to think he had everything under control, and then Lily came along and ruined the illusion. Potter was a glutton for punishment, though, because he kept letting it happen.

"Wait a minute, Evans! That's not a fair thing to say. You're assuming that I don't like people who I get into trouble, but you know the opposite it true! Moony would never have to serve detentions if it wasn't for me and Padfoot, and he's one of our best mates. So you're the one who's got it all backwards."

Lily galloped down two more flights of stairs and made a sharp left turn away from the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. She didn't want to be anywhere near Professor Avery at six thirty-five in the morning. He was scary even after he'd had his cup of coffee.

She shook her head at Potter. "You've got your priorities all messed up. You should help the people you like, not hurt them. If I put McGonagall down as a reference on my job applications, she'll have to mention that the Head Girl got a detention her first day."

Potter grinned moronically like he always did around Lily. She had to look away to keep from laughing at him. He was so unbelievably pathetic.

"All right then, Evans. Prepare to be _helped_ during detention today."

As they passed the Great Hall, Lily summoned a doughnut from the Gryffindor table. She made a point of hurrying off before Potter could get one for himself. He stifled his irritation.

"You know, when you act like this, you only make me like you more, Evans."

Lily nearly choked on her mouthful of raspberry jelly. She had to sputter and swallow several times before she could attempt an answer, but Potter wouldn't let her speak.

"I'm a man who likes challenges, and you're a challenge, Evans. You always have been. Ever since our first day, even on Platform 9 ¾ you just wouldn't do what I said."

"Of course not! Your suggestion that I have my cat pull my trunk onto the train was stupid," she retorted.

"That was a joke."

"Not a very funny one."

Potter lapsed into silence again, and Lily couldn't have been happier for it. They had been together for a total of two hours since sharing a cabin on the Hogwarts Express for the prefects' meeting, and she was already sick of him.

Lily turned down the Transfiguration hallway and walked past the classroom door. McGonagall's office was at the end of the hallway and around the corner. She could only hope that they were split up during the detention.

"Today is your last chance, Evans," Potter said bluntly. When Lily only raised her eyebrows in response, he went on. "I mean it. I'm sick of getting rejected all the time. So think long and hard today about how much you want me, because if you don't take me up on my offer today, it's withdrawn."

Lily stopped walking, and Potter, not expecting it, bumped into her. He backed off quickly when Lily put a fist into his side to make him move again.

"So, after today, you won't ask me out again or make innuendos in front of the first-years or hex people so that I'll pay attention to you?"

"Absolutely not," he replied resolutely.

"Thank God."

And with that, she knocked on McGonagall's door.


	4. 4: Runaway

**Dissonance In A Minor**

**Chapter Four**

"**Runaway"**

Lily's hope that she and Potter would be sent to opposite ends of the castle to serve their detention was crushed within two minutes of entering Professor McGonagall's office.

The Transfiguration Professor and caretaker (with a revived Mrs. Norris) were waiting for them. While McGonagall looked thoroughly scandalized by having to give the Head Boy and Girl detention assignments, Filch looked as though Christmas had come early. He simply loved giving Potter horrible duties, not that Lily blamed him.

"Miss Evans, Mr. Potter, for your parts in the unwarranted attack on Mrs. Norris, you will be helping Mr. Filch to clean the castle today. You will not be using magic."

Lily wanted to protest, she really did, but she kept a civil tongue.

"You two will learn to respect Mr. Filch and everything he does for Hogwarts by doing part of his job. I hope you take the lesson to heart," McGonagall concluded.

Filch led them down to the dungeons, past the Potions classroom, and through an S-shaped corridor. Lily had never been into this part of the castle, preferring the upper floors to the dark underground. Potter looked miffed about something, and she realized what a few minutes later.

The caretaker had led them to what had to be the dirtiest, most disgusting room in Hogwarts. No, make that on the face of the planet. Cobwebs lined the stone like so much sticky wallpaper. Shadowy black creatures the size of a hand skittered up and down the stone. Broken jars and up-ended cauldrons occupied a series of shelves. It appeared that the room had suffered structural damage at one time or another because lake water dripped freely from the ceiling and puddles had formed in the uneven floor.

"You'll be cleaning this room," Filch said nastily. "I expect it to be spotless or I'll have to give you another detention. Supplies are over there."

With a wheezy laugh he left the room, muttering to Mrs. Norris as he did so. Lily stared at the room, completely overwhelmed by the task in front of them. The two buckets, mountains of towels, bottles of All-Purpose Mess Remover, mops, and scrub brushes didn't seem like nearly enough equipment to rid the room of the filth.

"Guess we'd better get started then," Potter said lightheartedly.

Lily felt like impaling him with the mop. She was really so sick of his attitude. He acted like he was gracing her with his presence when she wanted nothing more than to be left alone.

"We've got all day to talk, Evans," he continued, smiling.

"Do you suppose we can use magic to light some candles in here? It'll be hard to clean in this half-light," Lily said, ignoring him.

"I'll tell you all about the Quidditch team, and you can tell me about Charms Club and …"

Whatever else he said, Lily wasn't listening. She was not going to serve another detention as Head Girl, and especially not with Potter. Therefore, this dank room was going to be positively sparkling when Filch came back.

"Hand me some of those towels, and I'll get started on these shelves," she said over the top of his oblivious speech. "You start over there. We should do the puddles last because with all this water coming in, they're bound to form again before the end of the day."

"Whatever you want, Evans. So, tell me, what exactly do you see in Marcus Fletcher?"

"Excuse me?" Lily demanded, for a moment forgetting about cleaning. "I don't believe I intend on discussing my love life with you, Potter."

"Why not? I tell you all about mine."

It took everything Lily had to not start yelling at him. Nothing would be gained by it except a delay in doing their detention duties. Lily turned to the nearest shelf and began clearing off broken jars half-filled with Potions ingredients and tossing them into the bags Filch had left.

"You need to start using your ears, Potter. I'm not interested. I haven't been for the past six years, and I'm not now. So just start cleaning and stop talking."

"But I thought we were going to really get to know each other today."

"That was your plan," Lily informed him, "but it's not going to happen. You swore to leave me alone after today, so I'll deal with you for now. But get it through your skull, Potter; I am not going to date you. Ever."

James leaned against the old shelves and surveyed her closely. He looked skeptical about something, and Lily felt another delusional Potter moment coming on.

"I don't buy it, Evans."

"Surprise, surprise," she muttered.

"I mean, normally you're on the offensive all the time. But this year, you haven't started hollering at me once."

"Well, it's only the second day. I'm sure there'll be plenty of opportunities," she snarled.

"You smiled at me on Platform 9 ¾, and on the Hogwarts Express you didn't even roll your eyes when I made fun of Jenna Elter's stupid new hat."

Lily felt her defenses rising. Was he really suggesting that something as serious as her hatred for him had changed drastically over the summer?

"The hat is fuzzy, purple, and says hello to people as she walks past them. It's dumb."

"Yeah, but you're Head Girl. You're all into being a role model, and last year—"

"Oh, shut up, Potter!" Lily yelled, finally having enough of it. "You are always talking just to hear the sound of your own voice! Do you even know what you're saying? Right then, you were suggesting that I'm in love with you. I promise you, I'm not. Merlin, I am so sick of people not listening to me!"

Lily turned away from him, angrier than she had been in a long time.

"I have to deal with it all the time, and I'm not putting up with it anymore. I was a prefect, Potter. Now I'm Head Girl. I think I'm clever enough to know my own feelings. I get enough of this from Petunia. I don't need it from you!"

Potter had gone very quiet. He didn't say anything for many minutes. When Lily showed no signs of getting back to cleaning, he moved towards her tentatively.

"Petunia is your sister, right?"

"What?" Lily asked, as if she had been someplace else for the last few minutes. "Oh, yeah. She's my only sister. She's a Muggle, through and through."

Potter shifted his weight awkwardly, and Lily had the impression that he was trying to figure out how to ask the next question because he kept opening his mouth and snapping it shut again. Much as she loved to watch him squirm, she took pity on his lack of interpersonal skills.

"She doesn't like magic. I've tried to tell her about Hogwarts. I even showed her a bit of magic. Of course, the Ministry went crazy about that. I got a letter threatening expulsion if I did it again. But that was nothing compared to how Petunia reacted."

A dark expression crossed her face as Petunia's harsh words surfaced in her mind. She breathed in deeply and hitched a false smile on her lips.

"But that doesn't matter. I'm back at school now, and we have a detention to serve. Since I really don't want to clean this room a second time, I think we should get back to work."

Lily started scrubbing the areas of the shelves she had already cleared off. Across the room, Potter did the same. Then, quite unexpectedly, he began to talk about normal, conversational things. Lily was so startled that she missed his first few sentences.

"Mum and dad were older when I was born, so they sort of spoiled me, I guess. I had a toy broom before anyone else I know. My dad was a Seeker, and I think he was kind of disappointed when I went out for Chaser, but he's proud of me, I think. We play pick-up games over holidays. Sirius comes over a lot, and the three of us play."

Lily looked over her shoulder. Potter was still clearing off shelves and scrubbing while he talked about his family. She went back to her own work, listening to the rhythmic baritone hum of his voice and feeling, for once, comfortable around Potter.


	5. 5: Eyes Like Yours

**Dissonance in A Minor**

**Chapter Five**

"**Eyes Like Yours"**

Lunchtime came and went, but Evans would not stop cleaning. James tried to reason with her again and again, but she wouldn't hear any of it. He and Sirius had served plenty of Saturday detentions, and despite what Evans seemed to think, they were allowed to go to the Great Hall for lunch.

"No, Potter, and that's my final word."

McGonagall showed up around one o'clock with a tray full of sandwiches and an iced flagon of pumpkin juice. She looked around at the room in wonder. All the shelves had been cleared of broken jars and scrubbed spotless. They had moved on to scrubbing the walls. Evans had found the source of the leak and got permission from Professor McGonagall to fix it with magic.

"I must say," the professor began, a note of pride in her voice, "I was very pleased to see that you both worked through the lunch hour. Perhaps Professor Dumbledore did not make a mistake after all."

Evans cast James a smug expression while McGonagall was inspecting the leak. There was a window in the ceiling, very oddly placed for a dungeon room, which was black with dirt. The glass was stained to look like the Hogwarts crest. Water was dripping steadily through numerous cracks, and James was sure that if the glass hadn't been magically reinforced, it would have shattered ages ago and flooded the school.

"You didn't work through our lunch break to get praise," James announced when McGonagall left.

Evans had taken out her wand and cleaned her hands the moment the professor was gone. She sat down and tucked into a turkey sandwich. She only cast a mildly annoyed look in his direction.

"You just didn't want anyone to see you dirty from working in here."

Evans nearly choked on her food. "I'm sorry, but I don't think I heard you right. Are you, Mr. Watch-Me-Mess-Up-My-Hair-I'm-So-Cool, accusing me of being vain? You've got some nerve, Potter."

James wasn't at all perturbed by her tone. He grinned easily while taking a ham sandwich from the tray.

"I know I'm vain, Evans, so don't think I'm hurt or anything. But I take comfort in the fact that I'm not duplicitous about it."

Evans froze. "Are you," she said slowly, "accusing me of being vain _and_ deceitful?"

"Not you particularly. Pretty much all girls in general, really. What's wrong with saying you don't want to go to the Great Hall because you're filthy?"

Splotches of red appeared on Evans's cheeks, but James didn't seem to notice as he downed half the bottle of pumpkin juice.

"You've really got a way with women, Potter," she spat. She surreptitiously rubbed her cheek with her sleeve, knowing that she must have dirt all over her face. "Way to be complimentary."

"So you _do_ get it?" James sounded elated. "I knew you'd see it my way eventually. We're like two sides of a Galleon, Evans."

She rolled her eyes while swallowing her pumpkin juice. "I said complimentary—not complementary. You and I might be two sides of a coin, but I'm a Galleon and you're a Knut."

James flashed her a bright smile. "That sounded a little vain to me, Evans. We've both got to be Galleons. We're too good looking to be Knuts."

Evans slammed down the pumpkin juice, her temper flaring again. "Do you ever think about what you're saying!? You're like a walking Babbling Beverage! Your mouth just never stops, does it?"

James loved almost everything about Lily Evans, but her self-righteous tirades were not among the things he admired.

"Oh, as opposed to thinking all the time and never doing anything?"

"I don't—"

"You are too like that, Evans, so don't even try to deny it. You're always sitting back and contemplating the morality of the situation while other people do something about it. So what if I don't always think before I leap? At least I take the leap."

Evans had stood up. She looked furious, and James knew he had touched a nerve. No one liked hearing the truth about their weaknesses.

"I have never in my life met anyone quite like you, Potter," she said harshly. "Make up your mind. Do you like me or do you hate me? Because I don't know what to think. One minute you ask me out and the next you threaten to hex me if I don't let you break the rules. One day you bring me flowers, and the next you put paralyzed doxies in my porridge. How am I supposed to know how to feel about you when I can't figure out how you feel about me!?"

James leapt to his feet as well, equally angry.

"And you're a lot better are you, Evans? You give me detention one day and show up to the Quidditch match with a 'Potter for President' sign the next. You shout at me when I do nothing wrong, but when I do break the rules, you just shake your head at me. I'm only reacting to your behavior!"

"Well, I'm only reacting to yours!"

Heavy silence fell between them, and they glared at each other. In third and fourth years, they had never had a lack of things to scream at each other about. Then, in fifth year, James had done the unthinkable quite by accident: he had asked Evans out. The words just slipped out, and he had been terrified that she would say yes. But she hadn't. She'd hexed him.

But from that moment on, James knew why the words had come out of his mouth. He was hopelessly in love with the girl who loved yelling at him. Fifth and sixth years had been nothing but a battle of wills between them. James knew that Evans had to feel the same way, somewhere down deep, because they loved fighting too much to not be in love.

Things had changed after Christmas of break sixth year, though. Evans had stopped fighting back so much. She was viciously witty when they were arguing, but during their shouting matches, she didn't seem to want to anger him quite so badly. It was all very disconcerting to James.

He wasn't that surprised when Evans gave up the fight and went back to cleaning. With a shake of his head, James picked up the mop and began soaking up the puddles while Evans fixed the cracked glass.

"I've seen a lot of fantastic things, Evans, but never anything quite like you."

James was thinking of rooms that only appeared at the time of greatest need, secret passages into the Hog's Head, a wizard with nearly failing marks becoming an Animagus, and a werewolf tamed by friendship.

"Is that a compliment?" she asked quietly.

"A compliment and a complement."

Evans stayed still for several minutes while she stared at the back of James's head. He could feel her eyes on him, but he didn't turn around. Then, she went back to work. For once, Evans seemed to understand what he was talking about and agree with him.


	6. 6: Voices Carry

**Dissonance In A Minor**

**Chapter Six**

"**Voices Carry"**

Lily stood up and brushed her hair off her sweaty forehead. This room was really starting to look like someplace inhabitable now that she and Potter had been cleaning for eight long hours. She didn't imagine Filch would be back anytime soon to get them. She had a feeling that "all day detention" meant more than the average work day.

The shelves and walls were sparkling, the cracks in the ceiling window had been repaired, and the puddles had been mopped up. Potter was finishing the last bit of shining the sconces on the far side of the room. Lily looked up at the stained glass bearing the Hogwarts Crest. Something about it was bothering her.

"I know," Potter said, dropping a dirty towel onto the floor. "Why would they waste the decoration on a dungeon room with no other purpose than a store cupboard? I feel like we're missing something."

Lily nodded. "And Filch had to know that we'd have finished the room in this amount of time. I mean, it's not exactly big."

The worst part of cleaning had been brushing away the cobwebs to find monstrous spiders lurking there. Potter had said, "Bugger no magic!" and used his wand to Stun them. Lily didn't like the idea of using magic when they had been forbidden, but there really wasn't another way to handle the palm-sized creatures that had been living in the dark, dank room.

"No hidden doors or secret passageways?" Lily asked.

Potter averted his eyes, which was a dead giveaway. He knew something else about this room. It hadn't gone unnoticed that Potter did all the cleaning on the west side of the room. When Lily had tried to go over there to clean the candle sconces, Potter had about had a heart attack.

"Come on, Potter, either you tell me or we'll have to serve another detention to clean that as well."

"I don't think Filch knows about it, else he wouldn't have put me in this room for eight hours. He knows I can find any shortcut or passage out of the castle. But I already knew about this one in any case. It's over there." He pointed to the far corner. "Tap your wand three times on the place where the floor and the two walls meet and say _'Dobolto_._'_"

Lily's eyebrows disappeared into her fringe. "You're kidding, right?"

"No, it was the first one we found. By accident, of course. We came out this way and got the password later. We don't think Filch knows about any of the passages with passwords. He can't open them, obviously, and he doesn't like any of the teachers enough to ask them."

Lily looked at him suspiciously. If Filch didn't know about the passageway, then why had he put them in this room for so long? No, Lily thought there must be something else hidden up out of sight. She moved over to the wall and began running her hands across the rough stone. She felt and felt, waiting for the merest tingle or the slightest hint that magic had been used on the walls.

"What are you doing, Evans?" Potter demanded. He had his wand out and was pointing it at the place to open the secret passageway. "We can go into Hogsmeade from here. Filch will never know."

Lily ignored him. She had felt something brush against her middle finger. It wasn't the spark of a spell that surrounded every place magic had been used, but an indentation in the stone. On one sandstone block, the Hogwarts Crest had been cut. Glittering red, yellow, blue, and green paint decorated the etching.

Lily pushed on the stone block, and then jumped backwards. The entire room seemed to rumble as the wall slid away and revealed an enormous domed room. Potter and Lily both threw their arms in front of their eyes. Dazzlingly bright sunlight seared into the room, rippling and splashing over the glass ceiling beneath the shallows of the Black Lake.

"Oh, Merlin," Lily breathed, transfixed by the patterns of light refracted through the water and glass onto the marble floor.

Potter, however, wasn't looking at the ceiling. He was walking down a long aisle, gazing from side-to-side. Gorgeous statues stood on five-foot plinths ten feet apart from each other in all directions. The concentric squares under the domed ceiling gave the room an oddly misshapen feel. Cobwebs covered the statues like sheer lace, and dust motes waltzed in the air overhead.

"Is this what Filch wanted us to find?" Lily asked.

The room was at least the size of the Great Hall. There was just no way they could ever get this cleaned.

"What is it?" Potter asked.

Lily cocked her head to one side, watching the dancing dust particles twirl and spin in the wavering light. A smile spread across her face.

"It's the Ball Room," she answered. "It hasn't been used for centuries because, well, no one really goes to masques or formal dances anymore. We just use the Great Hall, don't we? But these kinds of places used to be very important for socializing and making connections, usually for a woman's courtship and marriage."

Her words trailed off and she looked sidelong at Potter. That was a subject she really wanted to avoid with him.

"According to _Hogwarts: A History_, the last Headmaster to use it was Gordon Flight. He was so disgusted by the students' lack of propriety that he ordered the room sealed off. Apparently, some Gryffindors made obscene comments about the Greek nudes."

Lily glanced over at the exquisite form of Aphrodite. She wasn't surprised to see that someone had draped a cloth over the goddess's statue. The purple silk was dusty and dull now, but it still wrapped around her arm and over her hips, hiding anything a Victorian Headmaster would have found inappropriate.

"I don't think the Hobgoblins would have liked playing on that stage anyway," Potter said, looking at the head of the room.

Most of the stage was blocked by Roman columns and a long, narrow table with many high-backed chairs. The band couldn't have gotten all their instruments on that stage even with the table and chairs removed, and no one could have seen them play.

"Oh, I don't know," Lily said. "Don't you think this room would have been perfect for a Yule Ball? Flitwick would have decorated all the statues with garland and mistletoe and Charmed the ceiling to snow. The Black Lake would have been frozen over the ceiling."

There was a note of airiness in her voice, almost wistful, as she thought about the one and only Yule Ball they had had two years ago. Professor McGonagall had nearly breathed fire at the event. It was lucky Potter's prank had involved an impressive feat of Transfiguration or he probably would have been expelled. According to McGonagall, Potter had single-handedly ruined Christmastime for all future generations of Hogwarts students, because she would not permit another Ball to take place while she was Deputy Headmistress.

"It probably has great acoustics," Potter said, smiling devilishly, as if he already had a fantastic prank in mind.

He glanced at Lily, then at the ceiling. She knew what was going to happen even before the words left his mouth. Quick as she was to tell him to shut up, she wasn't fast enough.

"Lily Evans is the most beautiful girl at Hogwarts!"

_Lily Evans … Evans … Evans_, Potter's voice echoed.

"Shut up, Potter!" she snapped, her cheeks bright red.

His voice probably echoed all the way down the dungeon corridor. Anyone in the Potions classroom, and probably even Slytherin common room, would be able to hear loud and clear.

_Beautiful … beautiful … beautiful …_

Lily felt her face burning. Oh, she was going to kill Potter! She wondered if he ever thought about the consequences of his actions. But she already knew the answer to that. Of course he didn't.

_Hogwarts … Hogwarts … Hogwarts._

"What's going on here!?" Filch's angry voice demanded.

He shuffled into the Ball Room, Mrs. Norris at his heels and a lantern in his hand. In the bright sunlight streaming through the glass ceiling, the light from the lantern all but disappeared. Filch glanced around, noting the cobwebs still on the statues and the layer of dust covering the floor.

"This will be another Saturday detention, I think," Filch wheezed, grinning maliciously. "We'll go get that set up with Professor McGonagall right away."


	7. 7: The LeaveTaking

**Dissonance in A Minor**

**Chapter Seven**

"**The Leave Taking"**

When Lily walked out of the Ball Room, cool air hit her in the face. She hadn't realized how hot it was under the glass ceiling. The light in Filch's lamp came back to life as he led them into the dungeon corridor.

"You know," Potter began.

Lily wanted to turn around and slap him. She knew exactly what he was going to do. He was about to tell her that she only had a few more minutes to realize that he was the love of her life and she'd better confess right away.

"You've only got a few more minutes to realize that I'm the love of your life. You'd better confess right now."

What he had said matched her thoughts so perfectly that Lily couldn't help but laugh. After a long day of cleaning Muggle-style and putting up with Potter, laughing was the last way she had expected to end her detention. But here she was, laughing her head off while Filch led them back to Professor McGonagall's office.

Potter frowned at her. "I mean, you've had ten hours now, Evans. I think I've given you plenty of time to make your feelings known."

"Shut it, Potter," Lily said firmly.

The door to McGonagall's office had just opened. The Head of Gryffindor House looked them up and down. The Head Boy and Girl were covered in filth. Potter's hair was filled with cobwebs and dirt, and Lily's ponytail had slipped sideways.

"Well, I think that will do," McGonagall said.

"Actually, professor," Filch grinned. "They didn't get their task done. They were just talking when I came to fetch them"

McGonagall flared up at once. Her skin went white, her lips formed a thin line, and even her black bun seemed to tremble with rage.

"That's not true, Professor McGonagall! Mr. Filch led us to a room in the dungeons and we cleaned it top to bottom. We only found the hidden entrance to the Statues of Slytherin Ball Room about twenty minutes ago. At least, that's what I think it was. I haven't read that part of _Hogwarts: A History_ in a long time."

Potter rolled his eyes. "Look, Professor, Filch didn't give us specific instructions. We thought we had to clean the room he left us in, so that's the room we cleaned."

McGonagall turned to Filch, eyeing the gloating man with something very like disgust. "I agree, Argus. No one could be expected to clean a room that size without magic in one day."

Filch's smile drooped. "You … er, know about the Ball Room, Professor?"

"Naturally," McGonagall said, puffing up her chest. "When I was a young Gryffindor, we were required to attend four balls a year, and one of them was in the Statues of Slytherin Ball Room."

Potter opened his mouth, a sly smile playing on his lips. Lily elbowed him hard in the ribs. She was not going to let him crack a joke about McGonagall's age by comparing her youth to the time when dinosaurs roamed the earth.

"That will be all for you then," McGonagall finished. "And I trust the Head Boy and Girl to show more maturity in the future."

Lily couldn't hold back her snort. Potter cast her a dirty look while McGonagall arched an eyebrow in her direction. The teacher let the wordless comment pass, however, and retreated into her office.

"All right, Evans," Potter said, once Filch and Mrs. Norris had disappeared. "This is your last chance to tell me that you're madly in love with me."

Lily looked at him with a mixture of pity and disgust on her face. She closed the gap between them and spoke very quietly.

"You can drop the act, Potter. I know you're not going to change for me. You're too bull-headed for that. But I know what happened this summer, and I know that you're different now because of it. Maybe I'd give you a better answer if you didn't insist on pretending to be someone you're not."

Lily pulled aside a tapestry and stepped into a shortcut. She was seven floors above Potter and in front of the Fat Lady's portrait in two minutes flat.

As she mounted the stairs to the top-most dorm in Gryffindor Tower, she wondered if Potter would break the Marauder's Code. He had to know that Remus was the one to tell her about Sirius leaving his parents' house and James's reaction to that. Would he go ballistic on Remus? She hoped not.

Remus had only told her so that she wouldn't make inflammatory remarks about Sirius's family when she had nothing else about him to insult. A discussion about how James had cleared away his junk in the Potter's spare bedroom and stayed up all night writing letters to Remus and Peter so they would know had followed naturally.

Lily had to admit, she was impressed. Her best friend in the whole world, Dorcas Meadowes, had done the same thing for Lily after Petunia had gone crazy one night and spent hours shrieking about how Lily was a freak and a disgrace. She had expected Potter to be a little more mature when he came back to school, knowing what Sirius had gone through, but no. He was still the same old annoying toerag, still acting like the entire world revolved around him. Lily had been more disappointed than she cared to admit.

When Lily entered the seventh-year girls' dormitory, Dorcas greeted her with an evil smirk. That was never a good sign. Dorcas only smiled like that when she'd had a very good day and someone else had had a very lousy day.

"How was detention?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

"How was Potter?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Give him the answer he was so longing to hear?"

"I don't – WHAT!?"

Lily had just sat down on her bed, but she sprang up at once. The clean clothes she had fished out of her trunk landed on the floor. Her cheeks were burning, her temper was flaring, and she was in full fight mode.

"HOW DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THAT!?"

Dorcas laughed heartily, not one bit frightened by her friend's infamous temper. She motioned to the picture on her nightstand. Dorcas and Sirius were standing in front of the Quidditch pitch, their scarlet robes fluttering in the high wind, broomsticks in one hand, making lovey-dovey eyes at each other.

"Sirius told me, of course. He told me all about James's fake Stunning Spell, and how Pete is now serving a month's worth of detentions for provoking Peeves. Sirius had a narrow miss, I'll tell you that much. Slughorn almost saw him change back."

"Change back?" Lily shook her head. Dorcas's incomprehensible rambling wasn't the most important point at the moment. "What do you mean _fake_ Stunning Spell?"

Dorcas sat bolt upright, a look of positive glee on her face. "He didn't tell you! Oh my God! James really didn't tell you!?"

Lily was about two seconds away from jinxing Dorcas when her best friend flew off her bed and out the door. She raced down the stairs, yelling as she passed the other dormitories.

"Sirius! He didn't tell her! Can I tell her!?"

Lily collapsed onto her bed and buried her face in her hands. Everything had gone all to Hell since Dorcas had made friends with Sirius and James. Everything had been so peaceful in their dormitory before that fateful day. Now, Lily's whole life had turned on its head.

"Not quite," Lily mumbled to herself. "If I dated Potter, _then_ everything would be upside down."


	8. 8: Yellow Submarine

**Dissonance in A Minor**

**Chapter Eight**

"**Yellow Submarine"**

James nudged a second-year off the couch in front of the fire and occupied his usual seat. The littler Gryffindor made some lame attempts at a protest, but Sirius waved the kid off. Being smarter than the average second-year, the boy hurried away rather than start a fight with two seventh-years.

"What's up, Prongs? You look like someone put a whole packet of Sour Jarveys in your pumpkin juice."

James only shook his head. He didn't know where to begin. The day with Lily hadn't been a _complete_ disaster, but it hadn't ended the way he'd planned.

"Lily took option B: me never speaking to her again."

Sirius nodded and said blandly, "Clever girl."

He received in return a decorative pillow thrown at the side of his head. He shoved the gold tassels out of his face, laughing, and turned to see that James wasn't cracking a smile. Growing silent, he quickly adjusted his posture.

"Come on, Prongs. It's not like you to take things so seriously. That's Moony's job."

James nodded lethargically. "Yeah, I know it is, mate. I just really thought today was the day. Lily's been different lately, and I thought it was because she finally realized she liked me."

Sirius hesitated, not sure which way to come down on this announcement. He could say that Lily was mad and just acting the way girls were supposed to act. But he could also tell the truth: if this plan hadn't worked, nothing would.

"She'll come around, mate. But while she does, could you not look so morose? Please? It's really depressing."

"Yes, Padfoot," James hissed, "it is depressing when the girl you like thinks it would be great if you _never spoke to her again_."

Sirius shifted uncomfortably. He didn't like these conversations, and he wasn't very good at them. He needed to snap James out of it and get him to act like his usual self. Moping wasn't what the Marauders did.

"Well, you can't give up!" he shouted, and half the common room turned to stare. "You said today was your last day. The day isn't over, Prongs! You've got another five hours still. So, go up to her dormitory and finish what you started."

James stared at the fire, not speaking for several minutes. Finally, he turned to Sirius and asked dryly, "You just want to turn the stairs into a slide and watch me fall on my arse, right?"

"It would make me feel better," Sirius replied, allowing a little smile to pass across his lips.

James lobbed another pillow in his best friend's direction. Much as he tried to stay upset, Sirius could see the suggestion had cheered his mate up, if only a little. There was the familiar light in James's eye. Now it just needed some encouragement.

"We have a great life, Prongs," he said, "everything a teenager could want. We get house-elf cooked meals, a great view of the grounds, and we're the best looking, most talented wizards in our year. And that means," Sirius finished, climbing off the couch, "we can do anything, even convince Lily Evans that she's in love with you."

It didn't take much more coaching to get James off the couch. The two boys ran at the girls' stairs. Both having done this many times before, they knew the key was to get a good head start. Bounding from the floor to the stairs, James landed on the fifth step and Sirius on the fourth. They weren't quite quick enough climbing, however. Before they knew it, both were flying through the air and landing hard on their backs.

"Definitely getting some bruises from this attempt," Sirius laughed.

"Right on my arse, just like I predicted," James replied.

"And did it anyway."

As they climbed to their feet, laughing still, a third voice echoed against the spiraling walls of the girls' stairs. It sounded like _weeeee!_ Only one girl had ever taken that much delight in sliding down from her dorm. She had actively provoked the Marauders into creating the slide many times for her own enjoyment.

"Out of the way," James said, nudging a first year to safety, "Dorcas is coming down."

The tall girl landed gracefully at the foot of the stairs, beaming at James and Sirius. She gave her Quidditch Captain a thankful peck on the cheek, and then took a greater liberty with her boyfriend. Glad as he was that his best friend was getting happily snogged by a beautiful girl, James wasn't in the mood to see it right in front of him.

"I believe you were screaming something from the top of the stairs before we made you a slide?" James prompted.

"Oh, right," Dorcas said breathlessly. "I just wanted to know if it was okay if I told Lily."

"Tell her what?" Sirius asked blankly.

"You know, _told_ her."

"Oh, I see. If you _told_ her."

James sighed impatiently. He sometimes wished for the days when Dorcas had an irrational hatred of the Marauders. Although she'd made up some vicious rumors about them then, it was better than these maddening back-and-forth sessions that excluded and irritated everyone.

"I don't think that would be a problem. Actually, it would be really helpful at the moment."

"Great! I'll _tell_ her … as soon as the stairs are normal again. Maybe you two should back off? You're making the stairs nervous."

James, Sirius, and Dorcas retreated from the entrances to the dormitories and grabbed their favorite seats by the fire again. Not usually perceptive, it was surprising to James when Dorcas turned the conversation away from Lily by asking about the next Quidditch training session. Normally, she harped on and on … and on and on … and on and on and on about the same topic, because apparently no one had ever told her it was impolite to kick a dead horse.

"You and I have the maneuvers down, but Hill is still coming in a bit wide on most of the formations, so we'll start there."

It occurred to James, by the pointed way Dorcas kept the conversation away from Lily, that she had just been given every detail of the day's events. It was easy to forget that Dorcas and Lily were best friends when they had such different attitudes towards the Marauders.

He was curious now about what Dorcas was going to tell—or _tell_—Lily when she went back upstairs. James could be pretty confident that Dorcas was on his side. At least, she'd never discouraged him from going after Lily. He couldn't help but wonder if it would change anything at all. Lily was Lily—clever, beautiful, independent, and stubborn.

With a little sound like a sigh of relief, the slide transformed into a staircase again. Dorcas let Sirius finish his observation about the Beaters, and then hopped up from her place on the couch. She gave a knowing wink at her boyfriend before darting up the stairs shouting "Lily! Lily! Lily!" as she went.

"So … what's to _tell_, mate?" James inquired.

Relaxing into the plush couch, Sirius put his legs up on the coffee table with deliberate slowness. Then, giving the same easy smile he always did when he had a secret, he answered.

"No worries, Prongs. Dorcas is only telling Lily how fabulous our life is."


	9. 9: What You Waiting For?

**Dissonance in A Minor**

**Chapter Nine**

"**What You Waiting For?"**

After Dorcas had left the room screaming like a madwoman, Lily had stretched out on her bed with _Standard Book of Spells, Grade 7_. Although it was only the first week of classes, she was already halfway through the book and able to do most of the spells. What she hoped for now wasn't learning more magic, but forgetting about James and all the trouble he'd caused for her—today and over the last six years.

Lily had just stopped reading the same paragraph over and over when she heard the staircase turn into a slide and Dorcas's delighted shrieks. Her concentration broken again, she went back to the top of the page. She was tingling with irritation now, both at James and Dorcas. Today was a conspiracy to test her limits.

For the next quarter of an hour, Lily was able to read in relative peace. There was only a minor disturbance when her cat attacked the window and frightened the bird perched on the terrace outside. Otherwise, the dormitory hummed with the white noise the Gryffindors always created. She had gotten through six pages explaining Patronus Charms when the door crashed open again.

Dorcas stood in the frame, a mixture of mischief and haughtiness on her face. Lily groaned and slammed the book shut. There would be no reading tonight. Dorcas would see to that. Moving into a sitting position, she shrugged her shoulders.

"Okay, tell me," she said, resigned now.

Her best friend turned into a bundle of nerves. Hopping over to Lily's bed, she climbed into a cross-legged position before giving a girly giggle.

"Well," she began, her voice crackling with anticipation, "you might not have realized, but … James planned everything …"

Lily rolled her eyes. If this was the big announcement, then she was in for a long evening as Dorcas rehashed this obvious detail again and again … and again. Lily thought it would turn into an even greater misery than spending all day with James. At least she had something to occupy her time with during detention.

" … sort of," Dorcas was saying, "… about half-way planned, which for James is really phenomenal. It's proof that he really, truly likes you."

Lily's eyes widened in shocked. This was definitely crossing into dangerous territory. Although Dorcas was friends with James, she'd never advocated on his behalf.

"Whoa, whoa!" Lily cried, holding up her hands. "Please, _please_ tell me you haven't joined the Cult of Potter."

"Cult of Potter?" Dorcas asked incredulously. "He's my friend, Lily, and my Quidditch Captain. We spend a lot of time together, and I've gotten to know him a little more than you have."

The redhead flared up at once. "I know him plenty well! He's the boy who hexes younger students just because he can! He's the boy who walks around acting like he owns the castle! He's the boy who … who …"

Dorcas arched an elegant eyebrow. "Wow, Lily. That was pretty feeble. Usually you can go on for hours."

Lily huffed, annoyed now that she couldn't remember more things about James that she hated. Oddly, the myriad list of indiscretions had faded in her memory. She knew there was more. There had to be with six years of friction between them.

"He … he hexes younger students," she repeated lamely.

Dorcas looked like she was trying very hard to hide a smile. "Yeah, you said that one. But really, Lily, it's not that bad. Most of those students have it coming, and it's not like it's Dark magic. It's just jokes. No one is ever badly hurt."

This argument mirrored another conversation Lily had had two years ago so well that she was stunned into silence. She had always known there were worse people in the world than James Potter. Much, much worse, actually. She had even defended him on rare occasions.

"Dorcas, do they still …" Lily hesitated, unsure if she really wanted to ask the question. She could predict Dorcas's reaction. "… still hassle Sev?"

It was like a thunderhead forming over a pristine landscape. Dorcas went from wide-eyed excitement to simmering rage in less than five seconds. Dorcas's fingers dug into the red comforter so hard Lily thought she might tear it.

"You're … rejecting James … because of _him_."

Her friends had taken the incident by the lake two years ago more personally than Lily had. James, Sirius, and Dorcas—purebloods all—had reacted with such venom against Sev it was a little frightening. In the days following, even peaceful Dorcas had cast a nasty jinx in Sev's direction -- and rightfully received detention for it, which she was happy to serve as long as Sev was in the hospital wing.

"I just want to know, Dorcas, if he's gotten over childish vendettas," Lily said, backpedaling rapidly.

She could see the conflict on Dorcas's face. Her friend wanted to continue the argument, but was aware they were getting off topic far too easily. A few more retorts about Sev and his friends, and the subject of James Potter would be forgotten for the evening.

"No," Dorcas lied, though so convincingly Lily believed it. "I told Sirius what you told me after the … event, and he agreed to stop hexing him too. He brought James around a little later."

Lily paused, searching for any sign of untruth on Dorcas's face. She found none, though the lie was complete.

"Yesterday, he Stunned a cat, for Merlin's sake! _He Stunned a cat!_" Lily exclaimed.

Dorcas shrugged, "You tried to kick her at the end of last year."

Lily gave a frustrated growl. She just wanted to be finished talking about James Potter so she could go back to reading her Charms book in peace.

"There's something I need to _tell_ you," Dorcas said.

"Oh? Is there something more obvious than 'James planned this' that you'd like to share?"

Dorcas ignored the sarcasm and bobbed her head up and down. Leaning over to her best friend, she whispered a carefully guarded secret into Lily's ear. The redhead's face transformed from irritated anger to wide-eyed amazement.

It took only one glance at Lily's transfixed expression. Dorcas knew James would get his answer today, and it would go the way he'd wanted for so long. She and Sirius, on the other hand, would suffer the consequences for making the decision to tell Lily this secret without James's permission.

"That's why you're his friend," Lily murmured, still dazed.

Dorcas nodded. "If you didn't exist, Lily Evans, I'd make damn sure James Potter was my best friend."

The brunette hopped up from the bed and moved for the door, thinking it would be best to give Lily a little time alone to process what she'd just been told. On her way out, she turned slightly and pointed to the clock. It was 11:23 already.

"Tick-tock."


	10. 10: Can't Fight This Feeling

**Dissonance in A Minor**

**Chapter Ten**

"**Can't Fight This Feeling"**

Lily felt like the world was a snow globe turned upside down. The flakes of snow had begun to settle back to the ground, but none where they had been only a minute ago. She had been so sure James Potter was a one-dimensional little prat who had it coming. Then, with just a few whispered words, she found out who he really was behind all the blustering and strutting.

Gryffindor Tower was on its way to bed, and the clock told Lily she was running out of time to face the truth. She was not a girl unable to see what was staring her in the face nor afraid of confessing that she was wrong. But there was stubborn streak in her that she couldn't always overcome. That part of her liked to dig in even when there was no hope.

"Good night, Lily," a sleepy voice called.

The redhead started and glanced around their dorm room. Three of the five beds had the hangings drawn already. When had the other girls come up to their dorm? She found it incredible that her mind could travel so far away from here that she had totally missed the nighttime routine of three seventeen-year-old girls.

"Night," she said absently. "Did you see Dorcas in the common room?"

There was no answer. Everyone was already asleep. After the Tower had gone quiet, Lily wanted nothing more than background noise to occupy her thoughts. The minute hand of the clock had managed to turn another quarter of an hour. Lily's eyes locked onto it, watching as the second hand ticked up another minute.

Thinking that she would go find Dorcas for another chat—anything to fill up the minutes to midnight—Lily crossed the room and tiptoed past the six other dormitories down the spiral staircase. The common room was still except for the flames dying in the grate. A house-elf would come by soon to stoke it back to life. Maybe Lily could talk to it for a little while. They weren't great conversationalist, but they were very polite.

Lily's foot froze just above the floor, leaving her oddly positioned in mid-step. There was someone occupying the battered old sofa in front of the fire. She didn't have to study the shadow cast against the wall for long to identity the only other person in the room as James Potter.

She was tempted to book it back to her room, crawl into bed, and pretend to sleep. But she knew she'd be clock-watching and restless. There was a foreign compulsion urging her to stand right here on the stairs, uncomfortable as it was.

The sharp _crack!_ that broke the silence nearly made her scream, but she caught herself in time. A small house-elf with elephantine ears and widely spaced eyes had appeared in front of the fire. When it spotted James, it gave a high-pitch screech and bowed low.

"Evening, Roma," James said, a little chuckle in his voice.

"Good Evening, young sir," she replied, bowing again.

"Jilly asked if I would say hello to you, if I saw you this year. So … Hello from Jilly." The little elf called Roma looked utterly scandalized, and James quickly started sputtering something else. "I don't mean that she asked me. She would never, never do that because she's a good elf. I mean, that I asked—_ordered_—her to send a message for you."

Seeing the mighty James Potter, King of the Marauders, tripping over his words to make a house-elf feel more comfortable brought a laugh to Lily's lips. She couldn't hold back this time. The sound spilled from her throat.

Roma bowed once to Lily before Disapparating again, but James stayed where he was. Lily couldn't see through the mirthful tears, but she had a sense that he might have looked somewhere between incredulous and miffed.

"It's not funny, you know. My house-elf would die of humiliation if her sister thought she went around asking her masters for things."

"Oh, I know," Lily said, finally falling out of her frozen position and trotting into the common room. "It's not that. It's …"

She trailed off, her laughter ebbing away. It was replaced with Dorcas's whispered words. Suddenly, the scene she'd just witnessed wasn't humorous anymore. It was a singularly serious moment that she had misinterpreted so many times.

"Umm … can we talk, James?"

The simple question startled him, and he didn't respond for several minutes. Lily crossed the room and curled into a squishy armchair perpendicular to James's couch. While she tucked her legs beneath her, she watched him gather his composure. It was another moment that would have looked so different to her half-an-hour ago.

"Sure, let's talk," James said, getting some of his swagger back. "Want to plan our date in Hogsmeade?"

Lily shook her head. She thought the lack of flaming cheeks and knitting eyebrows disconcerted James because he lost the cockiness again. He looked so vulnerable without his attitude.

"After spending all day with you, James, I've come to a realization. It's not the one you were expecting, but neither was I." He opened his mouth, but Lily held up a hand. "Please, let me finish." To her amazement, he stayed silent. "What you need to do to win me over is the simplest thing in the world, but the hardest to do. You just have to tell me the truth."

"I've never lied to you!"

He was getting angry, Lily could see. She had a strange desire not to provoke him tonight. She felt, why she could not say, that it was vital they not get into another fight right now.

"There are only two times I've ever even liked you, James. The first was today when you told me about your dad and Quidditch. The second was just a few minutes ago when Dorcas told me about … about … about why you're called Prongs."

Oh, that had been a mistake. James looked like he was about to explode in a rage like Lily—nor anyone in Hogwarts—had ever seen before. She rushed on, hoping to divert his attention.

"And I know that if that's really you—the son who wants to make his dad proud and the friend so loyal he'd risk _everything_—then, yes, James, I want to go to Hogsmeade with you."

There was silence. Lily bit her bottom lip. She hadn't meant to ask James Potter on a date. It had just come out, and now that it had, she couldn't believe how badly she wanted him to say yes; how badly she wanted to know this person who would become an Animagus for his werewolf best friend.

"Never a minute early, are you?" James asked.

The clock chimed midnight.

**The End**


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